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Ocean/International

Vesta's 11th Hour has pulled into the lead for the moment, but it is a long way to go....

On Dongfeng, like the others, there has been little sleep as the red and white boat pounded upwind along the Coromandel coast – dodging in and out of the rocks – with plenty of tacking in strong winds on the nose.

But now that opening phase of the race is behind them and Charles Caudrelier and his team have been able to ease sheets as they broad reach in the Bay of Plenty, heading south to where the real action in this leg will take place.

The images from the boats show more spectacular shots of the Coromandel coast plus pods of dolphins skipping through the surf and abundant birdlife on this beautiful stretch of water near Gisborne.

The Volvo Ocean Race fleet left Auckland for Itajaí, Brazil on Sunday following a spectacular start to Leg 7 from the City of Sails...

It was a spectacular start to Leg 7 of the Volvo Ocean Race on Sunday afternoon, as the fleet left Auckland in perfect conditions.

The sun was out, the wind was near 20 knots, and as they have for 10 stopovers, the Auckland fans took to the water by the thousands to farewell the fleet. It wasn’t a surprise – over the course of the Auckland stopover,
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Seven Volvo Ocean Race teams will embark on one of the most classic legs in offshore racing on Sunday afternoon from Auckland, New Zealand.

Leg 7 of the Volvo Ocean Race is an iconic Southern Ocean challenge; a 7,600 nautical mile race through “Furious Fifties”, the inhospitable, remote waters south of 50-degrees latitude that circle Antarctica, around Cape Horn and up to Itajaí, Brazil.
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Sled Launched First And Look to Maximise Advantage With New Team New Zealand Alumni
(Tuesday 13th May, 2018, New Zealand) – Mr Takashi Okura’s New-Zealand-built Sled was the first of the nine latest generation new TP52s to touch the water when it made a splash in Auckland, New Zealand on February 15th. After a productive series of sea trials, the new Sled was on a ship to Europe on 24th February.

Quick report tonight as the day has been long and the night may be … eventful.

Wind swung into the WSW today and went to 25+. At noon I switched to the twin headsails poled out and we’ve been running before fast, squally weather ever since. Seas are running high due to winds further south, so Mo is a bit of a roller coaster ride. Winds have come up to 30 tonight, so I don’t know where this is going; thus the need to stay “on watch.”

This afternoon I performed more engine tests and found seawater in the crankcase oil (by boiling it on the stove and watching for bubbles).
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The collision between Vestas 11th Hour Racing and a mainland Chinese fishing boat just 30nm from the finish of Leg 4 of the Volvo Ocean Race came within an ace of keeping the Volvo 65 out of a third leg (Leg 7) of the Volvo Ocean Race.

Only the omission to cut up the moulds for the Volvo 65 one design at the Persico Marine, Italy made the logistics work in a repair project which took over 2000 man-hours.

The 43-day repair saga concluded on Monday in Auckland as the repaired Vestas 11th Hour Racing entered Auckland's Viaduct Harbour and was hoisted into her cradle joining the other six Volvo Ocean Race contestants.

Following the collision between Vestas 11th Hour Racing and a fishing vessel in the final stages of the Volvo Ocean Race Leg 4 into Hong Kong on 19 January, which led to the death of a fishing vessel crew member, the Vestas 11th Hour Racing team has issued an update.

In a statement put out today, Vestas 11th Hour Racing reported: “The team has now been informed that investigations by the Hong Kong and mainland China authorities will be closed shortly with no further action to be taken.”

This morning Vestas 11th Hour Racing has released an account from Mark Towill, who was skipper for Leg 4, when the incident took place. It reads:

Vestas 11th Hour Racing co-founder, Mark Towill, spent time at home with family and friends after departing the Volvo Ocean Race Hong
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OVER-WINTERING IN THE ARCTIC IN A SMALL VESSEL
Probably the best reason to spend a winter on a yacht in the Arctic is to see the full round of seasons, something that a vessel making a short summer dash to the north misses. Another reason is that ice conditions prevent a vessel completing its proposed voyage in a single season and the crew decides to spend the winter aboard and continue on the following year. A yacht that has decided in advance to spend a winter frozen in somewhere remote from a settlement can scout out a good location and perhaps ferry fuel from a settlement to the wintering site. However if caught by an early freeze-up, the choice of where to spend the winter is going to be limited to finding the safest cove in the vicinity with little chance of getting extra fuel supplies. Either requires
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Not too long ago the best weather forecast one could get at sea was from his barometer. And without a satellite link or single sideband radio, that is essentially what I’ve been reduced to. The barometer will tell you that change
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With a projected 24-hours remaining until the finish in Auckland, team AkzoNobel is protecting a slender lead over Scallywag and Turn the Tide on Plastic...

The finish of Leg 6 of the Volvo Ocean Race is shaping up to be a nail-biter after team AkzoNobel emerged from stealth mode on the public tracker on Monday with the narrowest of leads with just under 200 miles to go.

The southern ocean has dealt us a kind hand the last three days. Winds have been consistently light to moderate and the skies, Bright and open. Except for the Wandering Albatross, one might say he was transiting a trade wind belt. Nights have been clear too. Orion marching high. Sleep has been deep and long.
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HONG KONG-LONDON – MASERATI MULTI 70 THE ARRIVAL IN LONDON IS SCHEDULED FOR TOMORROW MORNING
February 22, 2018
Maserati Multi 70 entered the English Channel before dawn. After a very fast night thanks
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New leader Turn the Tide on Plastic made their move to the head of the fleet overnight.
That may have been the easy part. With challenging weather ahead, staying in front will not be straightforward....

Turn the Tide on Plastic became the new leaders of Leg 6 of the Volvo Ocean Race on Wednesday as the sprint from Hong Kong to Auckland moved inside 1,500 miles.